This invention relates to the topical application of all fluoroquinolones, including but not limited to, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, enoxacin, cinoxacin, pefloxacin, lomefloxacin, norfloxacin, tosufloxacin, fleroxacin, temafloxacin, trovafloxacin, and difloxacin, mixed in an alcohol and acetone vehicle for the treatment of a variety of organisms which infect the skin and a variety of inflammatory skin conditions. It will be in the form of a cream, ointment, lotion, gel, suspension, emulsion, cleansing bar, pledget, salve, tincture, spray, transdermal device, or other appropriate non-toxic pharmaceutical carrier.
Fluoroquinolone antibiotics were first developed in the early 1960s but the earliest one, nalidixic acid, proved particularly susceptible to resistant bacteria thereby making it ineffectual over the long term. In the last five years, fluoroquinolones have become increasingly popular as chemical alterations have dramatically decreased the resistant bacteria appearing after treatment. This has made the family of fluoroquinolones more effective than a number of other antibiotics in combating bacterial infections. Fluoroquinolones attack bacteria by targeting DNA gyrase and by interfering with bacterial replication.
Theses antibiotics have been used extensively to treat respiratory tract infections, urinary tract infections, diarrhea, postoperative-wound infections, and many other conditions, because they are readily absorbed after oral and topical administration and exhibit potent in vitro activity against a broad spectrum of bacterial species. U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,854 describes the oral, intravenous and transdermal use of lomefloxacin to treat urinary tract infections, upper respiratory tract infections, sexually-transmitted infections, opthalmological infections and intestinal infections.
Fluoroquinolone antibiotics are active against a wide spectrum of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria because of their broad antimicrobial activity. Varieties of fluoroquinolones, specifically ciprofloxacin, have been found to be effective against Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, coagulese-negative staphylococci, Streptococcus pyogenes, Staphylococcus epidermis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae, Proteus mirabilis, Proteus vulgaris, Providencia stuartii, Morganella morganii, Citrobacter diversus, Citrobacter freundii, and other susceptible organisms. The mounting resistance of Staphylococcus aureus to both penicillin and erythromycin has made the fluoroquinolone antibiotics a viable alternative for the treatment of skin diseases. Studies of the effectiveness of the oral treatment of ciproflaxacin on skin and soft tissue infections have shown the medicine to have cure rates of 80% to 100%.
Topical compositions of fluoroquinolones and its derivatives have been used for opthalmic use, as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,551,456, which describes the use of norfiloxacin and related antibiotics in the topical treatment of ocular infections. U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,432 describes a topical composition chosen from aminoglycoside antibiotics and quinolone antibiotics mixed in a sterile carrier, such as a water or ointment base, for the treatment of burns, other infection-prone wounds and ocular infection. U.S. Pat. No. 5,401,741 describes the topical treatment of ofloxacin mixed in an aqueous solution, for otopathy.
Combining a fluoroquinolone with a second active ingredient or antibiotic utilizes the two drugs' different mechanisms simultaneously to attack the many varieties of skin infections, inflammations and diseases. Fluoroquinolones have been tested in combination with coumermycin, amikacin, oxacillin, gentamicin, vanomycin, azlocillin, rifampin, and fosfomycin and have shown different degrees of synergy against Staphylococcus aureus. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,944,668 and 4,038,388, combine tetracycline with 8-hydroxyquinoline in a topical or oral application as the two active ingredients behave synergistically against certain micro-organisms. U.S. Pat. No. 5,648,389 describes a topical composition mixing an antimicrobial, including ciprofloxacin, with a beta hydroxy acid and water soluble zinc compound to treat acne in humans.
The objective of this invention is to combine all fluoroquinolones, including but not limited to, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, enoxacin, cinoxacin, pefloxacin, lomefloxacin, norfiloxacin, tosufloxacin, fleroxacin, temafloxacin, trovafloxacin, and difloxacin, in an alcohol and acetone vehicle for the topical treatment of a variety of skin conditions. The composition will be in the form of a cream, ointment, lotion, gel, suspension, emulsion, cleansing bar, pledget, salve, tincture, spray, transdermal device, or other appropriate non-toxic pharmaceutical carrier.